By Marcus Uhe
Berwick Springs has broken through for its maiden win in the new Dandenong District Cricket Association Turf 3 season, overcoming the previously unbeaten Lynbrook by 47 runs on Saturday.
Despite missing the destructive Jackson Marie at the top of the batting card, the Titans turned in their best batting performance of the season to date in the first innings before rolling Lynbrook for 148 in 41 overs.
Titans skipper Braydon Hillman hit an impressive 65 to provide the backbone of the innings, passing 50 for the first time this season as the mainstay on the card.
The skipper persevered through the adversity of losing a handful of partners before their respective innings’ got going, hitting two sixes and six fours in his stay at the wicket.
His resilience helped to counteract teenage prodigy Yashwant Singh, who took 4/39 from 10 overs for the Lakers.
Ethan Marinic also contributed 30 with the bat.
Harman Sahota’s opening spell put the Lakers on the back foot immediately by removing opening pair Sithara Perera and Cody Thompson for two and five, respectively.
Jay Walia pushed back with 73 at number six but his was the only score of note for the Lakers who succumbed in the 41st over.
Titans coach Shalika Karunanayake was the leading wicket taker with 4/39, with Sahota finishing with 2/13 from his seven overs.
At Narre North, the competition’s newcomers showed improvement in both departments against Fountain Gate but failed to prevent the Gators from collecting a third win on the bounce.
It took all 10 wickets for the second time in two weeks and posted its highest score with the bat, reaching 137 chasing the Gators’ 207.
Amardeep Hothi made 56 to top score for the Gators as they played a typically patient batting innings before Nadim Nazif top-and-tailed Narre North’s batting card, taking 4/45.
Kiruba Sathiyaseelan showed his class and experience by taking 3/41 for Narre North, as James Webb (37) and Fazmin Mohamed (36) both made starts.
Fountain Gate now stands head and shoulders above the remainder of the field as the only team yet to taste the pain of defeat in Turf 3.
Around Turf 3, Keysborough’s season has roared back to life following a 60-run defeat of Silverton.
Having opened the year with a heavy defeat to Lynbrook, the Knights appeared to iron out some creases in last week’s five-wicket win over Hampton Park, and doubled-down on their improvement by beating the Bakers.
Late runs from Christo Otto and Abhinay Motupalli took them to 8/182 in the first innings despite Harkanwal Singh’s 5/34, before rolling the Bakers for 122 in reply.
Otto added to his efforts with the bat by taking 3/18 with the ball, but the best figures in his side went to James Wright, who took 4/37.
Silverton never settled, dismissed in the 33rd over with Charith Anthony’s 30 the highest score for his side.
The loss was Silverton’s first, seeing them retreat to the pack with three other sides on 18 points.
Joining the quadrant is Hampton Park, becoming the latest team to thrash Doveton.
Led by Manjinder Kingra’s 62 and Travis Lacey’s 59, the Lions scored at nearly a run-a-ball in setting 258 for victory.
A total of that size was likely to be too much for Doveton, given their early-season batting woes, and it proved to be just that.
Just two players reached double figures as the Doves capitulated to 79 all out in 25 overs.
Hassan Ali and Obaid Syed put on 28 for the first wicket but Ali’s dismissal was the beginning of the end for the Doves, as the 10 wickets fell with the addition of just 51 more runs in 18 overs.
Vijay Pal Singh concluded the innings with a hat-trick for the Lions to finish with 3/4.
Doveton seamer Hamed Azadzoi offered his side a silver lining, meanwhile, taking 4/35 with the ball in the first innings.
